In Russia, the price tag on Chinese-made cars remains higher after the import chain is complete, driven by customs duties and dealer margins tied to aftersales. Jan Haitser, vice president of the National Automobile Association, spoke to ura.ru about how those costs translate into higher retail prices.
Haitser explained that in China, the car often costs less because margins for sellers are thin, with profits arising from the volume of sales and the ongoing maintenance of vehicles. He added that production expenses are generally lower in China, where essential technologies and know-how are readily available to manufacturers.
When a Chinese model is imported into Russia, roughly 48% in customs duties is added to transport costs, pushing up the landed price. The combined effect can roughly double the sticker price, reaching about 2.1 million rubles.
Such dynamics come as the overall market cooled in early 2025. Data show that in the first quarter, Russia’s new-car sales across all segments declined by 27 percent year-on-year to 287,200 units. In March alone, the pace of decline accelerated to about 45 percent.
Breaking the totals down by segment shows sharp falls: passenger cars around 245,000 units (-26%), light commercial vehicles about 24,000 units (-16%), trucks roughly 15.4 thousand (-46%), and buses around 2.5 thousand (-55%). Electric vehicles remained scarce, with about 2,100 units sold in Q1 2025, down roughly 67% from a year earlier.
Sergey Tselikov, president of Avtostat, noted that a leading reason behind the drop in demand appeared to come from consumer sentiment. A Telegram channel poll indicated that around 63% of respondents attributed the decline to mood rather than supply constraints. Dealers have also observed that discounts tied to registering Chinese cars are not being actively sought by buyers.